Medical ointment retainer



March 13, 1956 w MEDICAL QINTMENT RETAINER Filed Aug. 26, 1954 Emi R ATTCI RN EYE United S atent iirldbibii with-iii, siiihey', fish Applicatibn August 26, 1954, sent: No. 452%? 5 c1; rz itii This invention relates to devices for treating an ailing ear, such as commonly referred to as earache, and in particular an ear snorkel including a funnel-shaped body of rubber or of a suitable flexible plastic and in which clefts are provided on opposite sides of a partition having an extended end whereby as ointment is applied through one cleft air escapes through another and wherein the ointment is retained in the ear regardless of the position of the patient.

The purpose of this invention is to provide an applicator or retainer that is adapted to remain in position in an ear and which prevents the escape of ointment applied to the ear.

Ointment applied to an ear by conventional means, such as with a dropper, is not satisfactory as cotton inserted in the ear in an effort to retain the ointment in position absorbs the ointment with the impaction causing discomfort and impairing hearing as well as often resulting in inflammation in the interior of the ear, caused by lack of air circulation required to relieve hemorrhage, with the additional discomfort of making hearing difficult. Furthermore, ointment applied to an ear of an infant or adult with the ear in pain or aching, wherein, the patient being restless, turns over after a few minutes, drains out or into the cotton packing thereby also causing inflammation and discomfort and making hearing difficult.

With this thought in mind, this invention contemplates a medical ointment retainer or snorkel to be used in an ear which simplifies the application of ointment to an ear and retains the ointment in position in the ear.

The object of this invention is, therefore, to provide a medical retainer or ear snorkel that may readily be inserted in an ear and that permits escape of air as ointment is applied to the aching part of the ear.

Another object of the invention is to provide a medical ointment retainer for use in an car which permits circulation of air through the ear and at the same time retains ointment in the car.

A further object of the invention is to provide a medical ointment retainer or ear snorkel for facilitating inserting ointment into an ear and which retains the ointment in the ear without preventing circulation of air in which the device is of a simple and economical construction.

With these and other objects and advantages in view, the invention embodies a body of a substantially funnel shape with clefts divided by a partition or web extended longitudinally therethrough with the outer end provided with an arcuate circular flange and with the partition provided with an extended end providing a handle to facilitate inserting and removing the snorkel with the thumb and forefinger of a hand.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view showing the im-, proved medical ointment retainer illustrating the use of t s i ai tli i ii qii st. at gel, adjoinlng portions of the head being shown in s 2..i.an. nd. exa illlis ati the ca snprkel showirig the center partition and side chan- W... nebula-x. a; a. M1,,- .ts i p J asses ction-thr ushlh tsi v cs1 line 3--3 of Figure 2 showing the method of dr i sidaq he. .r .ta a r,an ,s9 thowin th st rrounding portions of the .head of a patient in broken line 21.. a. 1i: a.: was Figure 4 is a view lobkirig toward the small end of the device.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters denote corresponding parts, the improved medical ointment retainer or ear snorkel of this invention includes a funnel-shaped body 10 having threads 11 on the outer surface with an arcuate circular flange 12 extended from one end and with clefts or openings 13 and 14 extended longitudinally through the funnel-shaped body and separated by a partition or web having an extended end 15 which is positioned in a circular recess 16.

The intermediate part of the body is provided with an arcuate section 17 and the inner end is formed to provide a nipple 18.

With the parts formed as illustrated and described, an ear snorkel is provided that may readily be inserted in a channel 19 of an ear and with the head of a patient in a horizontal position ointment may be dropped with a dropper, as indicated by the broken lines 20, into the cleft or opening 14 with air escaping through the opening 13, as shown in Figure 3, and with the device in position it will be substantially impossible for the ointment to drain from the ear channel regardless of the position of the head of the patient.

By holding the device with the extended end or flange 15 between the thumb and forefinger of a hand, the snorkel may be turned several times with the threads 11 holding in the surface of the ear channel. By the same means the snorkel may be removed by turning the body in the opposite direction.

With the medical ointment retainer or car snorkel formed in this manner, the application of ointment to an ear is simplified and the device may readily be sterilized for sanitation purposes.

It will be understood that modifications, within the scope of the appended claims, may be made in the design and arrangement of the parts, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A medical ointment retainer comprising a substantially funnel-shaped body adapted to be positioned in an ear channel, said body having an enlarged intermediate portion with a nipple extended therefrom and having a partition extended longitudinally through the body, said partition having a gripping end extended from the body, and said body also having a pair of longitudinally disposed openings positioned on opposite sides of the partition and extended longitudinally through the body and nipple.

2. A medical ointment retainer comprising a substantially funnel-shaped body adapted to be positioned in an ear channel, said body having a pair of longitudinally disposed openings extended therethrough, and having a web providing a handle positioned between said openings and extended from the outer end.

3. A medical ointment retainer comprising a substantially funnel-shaped body having threads on the outer surface of the intermediate part and having an arcuate circular flange extended from the outer end, said body also having a transversely disposed web extended across said flange and having longitudinally disposed openings separated by the web and extended longitudinally through said body. 3

4. A medical ointment retainer comprising a substantially funnel-shaped body having threads on the outer surface of the intermediate part and having an arcuate circular flange extended from the outer end, said body also having a transversely disposed partition extended across said flange and longitudinally disposed openings separated by the partition and extended longitudinally through the body, said body being formed of resilient material.

5. A medical ointment retainer comprising a substantially funnel-shaped body having threads on the outer surface of the intermediate part and having an arcuate circular flange extended from the outer end, said body also having a transversely disposed partition extended across said flange and longitudinally disposed openings separated by the partition and extended longitudinally through the body, said body being formed of resilient material, and having a nipple extended from the end opposite to that on which the flange is positioned.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 140,350 Crowther July 1, 1873 754,081 Muller Mar. 8, 1904 858,673 Roswell July 2, 1907 2,623,523 Benson Dec. 30, 1952 

